In the Shadows
by Outlaw Team
Summary: Ruby took a mission and never came back, and Weiss's life only got worse after that. Now that she has a chance to do the mission Ruby never returned from, will she find Ruby again? Or is it too late?


**New story! As if I didn't have enough on my plate. Not sure if I will continue this, so this is mostly support based. I brain-stormed this on a sleepless night. This is a lot different from anything I have ever written before. Excuse me if I missed any edits.**

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><p>It started a month ago.<p>

Weiss was handling herself and Ruby just fine with her inherited family dust company.

Ruby and Weiss were deep in love, only being apart whenever Ruby had to go on a Grimm hunt.

While Yang had never approved of Weiss, but she kept quiet for Ruby's sake.

Everything was fine until another dust company came and ruined it.

The Enchant Dust Company had more dust for the world's demand than the Schnee Dust Company ever could.

Then the lawsuit.

Weiss always deemed it unfair. She never even knew what the lawsuit was for, but that didn't change the fact that she had to come to Ruby and Yang's house in the middle of the night, having hardly any of her own items besides Myrtenaster.

Ruby let Weiss use her room and left that night for a high-paying, Grimm-clearing operation. She didn't return.

Weiss wanted to pay her own half of the house bills, making her search around for a job. She couldn't get any jobs hunting Grimm, forcing her to become a waitress at a local restaurant. Every morning, she would check if Ruby's old job reopened.

The job would reopen really often, and Weiss would see quite a few of her old friends take the job, never to return. Team JNPR accepted the job and never came back.

The same happened to Blake.

Things got worse between Yang and Weiss as days went on, Ruby having been the one to make them tolerate each other.

In order to somewhat alleviate Yang's rage, Weiss sold Myrtenaster to pay off the house bills for a week.

Once that week was over…

Weiss looked at Ruby's old computer and typed a few letters. "…finally!" She found the job Ruby had taken had reopened. This time, she didn't waste time taking the job. She heard the door open. "Welcome home, Yang."

"Well you're not welcome…" Yang slurred as she stumbled to the couch behind Weiss. She had been drinking again.

It hurt Weiss when she remembered how directly **honest** Yang was when she was drunk.

A train of hurtful words always followed.

Weiss braced herself for whatever tongue lashing she would get this time.

If only she knew it would be getting physical this time.

Weiss cringed when the TV remote hit the back of her head. She turned to Yang. "What is your problem!?"

Yang jumped over the couch so she was in front of Weiss. "You're my problem! Ruby is gone, and I bet she hasn't come back because a certain Schnee bitch is expecting something from her!"

Weiss frowned. "…do you really believe that?"

Yang punched Weiss in the gut. "Yes! The whole damn time she has been gone, I have believed this!"

Weiss collapsed to the floor from the impact, gasping for breath as she tried to recover.

"Look at you now, Schnee! In Beacon, you were so cocky, but now you are a useless sack!" Yang hefted Weiss up by her neck. "Well I'm done putting up with you!" She headed for the door and forced Weiss out. "Get out and stay out!"

Weiss only grunted in pain as Yang slammed the door behind her. She stood up and began to walk down the late night road.

Turning back to the house was probably what Yang wanted her to do, and Weiss wasn't going to give her the satisfaction.

She stopped on a bridge and looked down into the water, contemplating her next course of action.

Suicide seemed rather appealing at the moment. It would allow her to see Ruby again.

Weiss closed her eyes as she tried to turn herself from that thought, but she couldn't.

Her life was now full of suffering and mockery.

Mockery from those who used to be below her.

The title "Heiress of Schnee Dust" meant nothing now.

Weiss was on her own now, a waitress who used to be more.

A man leaned next to her. "Don't even think about it."

Weiss turned to the man. "What other choice do I have at this point?"

The man was obviously quite wealthy. He wore a black suit and hat. His hair was gray and long, weird for someone who was obviously rather young. His one, golden eye that wasn't covered by his hair shined at Weiss. "Why don't you stay with me for tonight. You can think about this there."

Weiss frowned.

What did the man hope to get from her?

What was his goal? His motive?

Weiss sighed and nodded.

The man led her a short distance to a rather large home. He immediately let Weiss inside and told her to take a seat.

Weiss looked around.

The home was well furnished, though the large amounts of bright yellow were threatening to burn a hole into Weiss's eyes.

Weiss sat down on an armchair and sighed.

The man sat down on a seat across from her. "What is an attractive young lady like you doing out in the middle of the night?"

"Tell me who you are first."

The man chuckled. "Of course! Almost forgot my manners. I am Tsundur Christian, owner of the Christian Investment Corporation and headmaster of Limpus Academy."

Weiss's eyes widened in realization. "O-oh… I am sorry to intrude so late…"

Tsundur smiled. "Think nothing of it! May I have your name as well?"

"…everyone used to know… I am Weiss Schnee. I guess I currently have no title besides 'waitress'."

Tsundur frowned. "I am so sorry for your plight. If I may offer you a suggestion, there is one job that may profit you better-"

"The Grimm in the ghost town."

"Exactly."

"My girlfriend took the job and never came back. I recently took the job in hopes of finding out what happened to her. I am supposed to start tomorrow, but I never thought out what I could possibly do… My hands are more tuned to washing dishes than holding a rapier, and I don't even have a weapon anymore."

Tsundur froze. "Did you say 'rapier'?"

"Yes. I use a multi-action dust rapier."

Tsundur walked out of the room.

Weiss didn't move from where she was sitting. _"Did I offend him?"_

Tsundur returned with a box. He handed Weiss the box before returning to his seat. "Open it."

Weiss opened the box.

The box held Myrtenaster, just as well-maintained as when Weiss used it regularly.

Weiss quickly pulled the rapier out of the box. "How-?"

"I collect rapiers. A friend bought it for me as a gift," Tsundur answered.

"Th-thank you…" Weiss felt a few tears fall from her eyes. She was finally going to do it. She was going to find Ruby.

Tsundur waved his finger at her. "Not so fast. I want something back in return."

Weiss froze. "What?"

Tsundur frowned. "My brother, Lucas, took that job."

Weiss remembered that name. "Lucas Christian?"

"That's him. Do you know him?"

"He taught at Beacon for a while… He was the only professor my team had truly become friends with…"

Tsundur crossed his arms. "…Lucas became headmaster of Asylum Academy before he took this job. He never returned. I want you to **downright, fucking kill** the son of a bitch who did this to him. That is all I ask of you."

Weiss held up Myrtenaster. "Consider it done."

Tsundur smiled. "Now then…" He pulled up a laptop and began searching Beacon's old records. "…I will have your combat wear ready by tomorrow. Get some sleep. Go ahead and use my bed, I don't plan on sleeping tonight."

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><p>Weiss looked at the items laid out for her. "…what the hell is this?"<p>

Tsundur came out of another room with a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. "Your combat wear."

"It…looks really heavy."

It indeed looked heavy. While it was designed with the looks of Weiss's old combat skirt in mind, the long-sleeve white shirt and pants had a lot of thick areas for absorbing blows.

And that was without mentioning the countless pockets.

"Its looks are deceiving. That is light-weight combat gear made for high-speed combat in mind. I spent the night making it, so have at least the smallest bit of decency and say thank you." Tsundur rolled his eyes.

Weiss sighed. "Ok, thank you."

Tsundur looked outside. "…probably best to get you there early. Rain in coming. You think you can make it over, or should I drive you there?"

Weiss began to head for the door. "You're not driving until you get some sleep."

Tsundur held up his cup of coffee. "But this is liquid sleep!"

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><p>"Preparations are complete. You will begin immediately."<p>

Weiss nodded to the man that guided her around the area.

The man handed Weiss a large backpack. "These are supplies. You will be in there for a long time."

Weiss shouldered the bag. "What do I need to know about this operation?"

"The Grimm inside the ghost town are very, **very** aggressive. That is why we keep all operations as small surgical strikes. An energy barrier has been put around the area to prevent the Grimm from escaping, but hunters are required to make sure the Grimm don't overwhelm the barrier. The barrier is strong, so understand that once you go in, you are not coming out until all the Grimm are dead."

Weiss froze. "Until **all** the Grimm are dead!? That's suicide!"

The man narrowed his eyes at her. "You can turn down this job now if you like."

Weiss shook her head. "No. I'm going."

The man smiled and nodded. "Love your guts. I would never take this job." He pulled out a medicine bottle. "This medicine is for preventing madness. As you will be trapped in a closed area for a long time, this medicine is a must. You have multiple bottles in your supply bag."

Weiss checked her bag to make sure.

Three bottles were indeed lined up next to her food supply.

The man pulled out a tape recorder and a series of tapes from a table next to him. "This is also for preventing the madness. Talk into it to clear your mind when you feel stressed. Trust me, it will help. It doesn't matter what you say. No one will listen to the tapes except you."

Weiss took the items and put them in her bag. "Is that it?"

"That's it." The man led Weiss to a small door. He waved to a man behind a series of control consoles.

A small bit of the barrier was let down.

"Good luck. You are the first person to attempt this mission completely alone."

Weiss walked through the small opening. "I won't need luck."

The barrier closed behind her.

Weiss walked through the desolate area.

It looked just as one would expect.

Buildings were ruined all around and the roads were cracked.

Weiss felt a raindrop fall on her hair. She looked up.

Rain had come, though only a very tiny amount of the droplets fell safely through the energy barrier.

The darkness that came with the rain allowed for the beautiful display of dust slowly rising from the ground and into the energy barrier.

Weiss walked through the middle of the streets, not worried about the incredibly small bit of water that made it through the barrier at the moment. She froze when she heard something.

Someone.

Crying.

Weiss entered the building next to her and unsheathed Myrtenaster. "Whoever is there, step out now. I will not hesitate to kill you."

No response other than the crying stopping.

A scream ripped through the air.

A dark creature jumped around a corner. It was a disgusting four-legged beast made of black slime.

Weiss actually took a moment to process this. _"I've never seen a Grimm like that before."_ She spun Myrtenaster's cylinder and projected a red dust glyph under the Grimm.

The Grimm only got launched into the ceiling.

Weiss looked at Myrtenaster in shock.

No dust.

_"But I just checked Myrtenaster five minutes ago!"_ She quickly checked her spare dust capsules.

Empty.

She panicked when she remembered something.

The way dust rose into the barrier wasn't simply a side-effect.

It was intentional.

_"Dust is useless in this barrier!"_ Weiss prepared Myrtenaster for a more direct fighting method.

The Grimm leaked down from the ceiling and reformed in front of Weiss.

Weiss quickly slashed at it.

The Grimm melted into slime, letting the blade go through its body. It quickly reformed and slashed at Weiss with its claws.

Weiss took a few hits to her forearms, but none of the slashes made it through her clothes. She sliced the Grimm in half before in had a chance to melt again.

The Grimm didn't get back up.

Weiss checked the corpse to better understand the new Grimm.

It had a rather big nucleus in its center.

Weiss was lucky enough to have hit that weak spot. She sighed and moved over to another room.

The room was empty, so Weiss decided to lock the door and make camp there for the time being.

While it was still early in the morning, Weiss had only gotten a few hours of sleep that night. She sighed and sat down against a wall.

A table next to her fell apart, everything on it falling onto Weiss's lap.

Weiss cursed and brushed the dust and debris off her pants. She froze when a tape became rather visible in the debris. _"The other hunters had tape recorders."_ She pulled out her tape recorder and put the tape in.

**_Hello! Hello! This is Ruby Rose!_**

Weiss felt tears form in her eyes when she heard the familiar voice. _"Ruby… What happened to you?"_

**_I am leaving one of my tapes where I think someone can find it. If you are listening to this, you are probably one of the hunters from the next team to take this job. I am here to say you have made a terrible carrier choice, just let me tell you! Don't worry though; this will also be your last!_**

Weiss let one tear fall. _"She sounds just like she used to… Happy until the end."_

**_As you may or may not have found out, you cannot use dust here. You cannot leave. The Grimm here are some strange fungi-based species. As long are they are hit on an area that isn't their brain, they can regenerate. Be careful. This strange fungi material can change into any material. Steel, iron, titanium, you name it. The Grimm here are also very intelligent. Hopefully you locked the door behind you when you entered this room, because this may be the only safe area for miles. Just remember to talk to your tape recorder every night, and only take your medicine when necessary. I've got to go now. My idiot partner here is nothing like my old partner, so he is probably getting his ass kicked by some random Grimm._**

Weiss ejected Ruby's tape and put it in her bag. "Tomorrow, Ruby. I will do my best to find you tomorrow."

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><p><em><span><strong>Party members<strong>_

**Weiss Schnee: Tactician**

_**Madness counter**_

**Weiss Schnee: 1%**

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><p><strong>First chapter done! Leave me a review, follow, fave, do something! Support is what will get this moving! Offer suggestions as well!<strong>


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